The Underworld of Coruscant
by Jack Noshima
Summary: Etheshif, a proud and arrogant Jedi Padawan, gets put on a trivial task he thinks is below him. Soon after, he is attacked and thrown into the underworld of Coruscant, with nothing but his Jedi training and his growing anger to help him.


Jedi Padawan Etheshif walked purposefully through the main hall of the Jedi Temple on Coruscant. As part of his training, he had read up on the history of the Jedi Temple, both the old and the new one. He walked through the halls, almost imagining the history the temple held. How it stretched back into the old order's of the Jedi Order, how it was destroyed on more than one occasion, how it was claimed by the Sith and reclaimed by the Jedi once again. Etheshif felt pride to be there, to be standing in a building that stretched back so far into history. Etheshif was feeling especially happy today. He had completed another task, easily, for his master, bringing him one step closer to becoming a Jedi Knight. He walked with a slight bounce in his step, a smile on his face and his robes flowing around him.

He stepped into the elevator and travelled up into the higher levels of the temple, up to the level where Master Gelrin's chambers were. Stepping off the elevator, he rounded the corner, walked further down a corridor, and stood outside a door. Taking a second to relax, he pushed the button and the door shot open, revealing Gelrin's chambers inside. The sky blue coloured Twi'Lek stood beside the window. Her eyes were closed as she let the soft light fall upon her skin from the sunset in the distance.

"Ah, my padawan, welcome back," Gelrin said, her soft voice calm and steady.

Gelrin turned around at that point, her brown robe flowing around her. Gelrin's hands were held together in front of her. Her face turned from calm to slight happiness, seeing her apprentice alive and well.

"I felt your presence approach, I also feel your satisfaction. I presume the mission was a success." Gelrin continued.

"Of course, master," Etheshif said with a smile.

"Be mindful, padawan," Gelrin said, a frown beginning to form. "You are strong in the force and an impressive duellist with your lightsabre, but you have much to learn in the ways of the force. Do not let arrogance cloud your judgement. Always assume there is someone better than you out there, and let it motivate you to grow in the ways of the force, to overcome your enemies whilst keeping peace and harmony. Pride is good in moderation, but it can lead to anger, which is the root of the dark side."

"Yes, master, I apologise," Etheshif said, putting his hand across his chest and bowing a little.

"It has taken centuries, but the dark side of the force is finally in check, the universe is beginning to prosper. Soon, young padawan, you will be a knight of the force, a warrior and a peace-keeper. You are nearing the end of your apprenticeship, soon you will face the trials. I just hope you learn more humility before then," Gelrin explained.

"I will continue to meditate, master, and attempt to put such bad habits to rest," Etheshif said calmly.

The truth was, Etheshif always felt the slightest bit frustrated when he was chastised by his master, even when he had done a job well and felt pride because of it. Confidence made him stronger, more able to work without panicking, he didn't see how that was a bad thing. However, he had become good at masking the slight frustration he felt. He knew how good he was, he knew that once he become a Jedi Knight, he would be recognised for the skill and strength he had. He would be able to go on better missions, to save more lives.

"For now, though, let me hear your report," Gelrin said.

"I managed to contact the Togruta farmer on Balmorra who sent the request for help. He was agitated that the Jedi Order had only sent a padawan to help him, he felt I wouldn't be skilled enough to help him. I managed to calm the farmer down and got him to explain the situation, with the promise of calling for back up if I felt I couldn't handle the situation by myself. He explained that every night a small group of insect creatures were attacking his farm, damaging and eating his crops, destroying parts of his farm. He only survived as long as he did because his house was reinforced metal. Believing these creatures to be Collicoids, I felt I could reason with them and, if not, I could easily subdue them. When night fell, the creatures appeared right on schedule. They burrowed in to the edge of the farm and began eating wildly at the crops. I tried to reason with the creatures, but they wouldn't listening. One attacked when it heard me and the others followed suit. I, very quickly, managed to defeat them, but something seemed wrong. Investigating further, I discovered that the DNA of the Colicoids had been mutated, so that they had become savage creatures. Knowing that it was very possible for more of these creatures to be alive, I felt I had to investigate.

"I tracked the creatures back to a cave system in the near by mountains. Entering the caves, I found immediate evidence of a Colicoid nest. I entered into the nest further, keeping my senses sharp in case any more savage Colicoids were near. Exploring further into the cave, I found even more evidence of Colicoid activity, as well as some more savage ones. When I reached the heart of the cave, I found a Colicoid Mother, a giant insect creature that was producing eggs. I tried to reach into the mother's mind with the force, but all I felt there was rage. I could've tried for days and gotten no where. Looking around the cave, I saw numerous side tunnels that were exposed to sunlight. I had no idea how far the tunnels stretched or how many there were. Although I didn't want to, I felt the best option would be to collapse the cave. The Colicoids were beyond reason and they would've hurt far more people if they had been allowed to live.

"I loaded the dead Colicoid from the farm onto my shuttle and brought it back to be analysed, but I believe that this Colicoid nest was a remnant from the Sith experiments done on the Colicoids from millennia ago. I have my entire report on my datapad for you."

Etheshif finished the report by handing the datapad to Gelrin so she could look it over. Etheshif stood there in silence as Gelrin looked over the scans and notes on the datapad.

"You did well, padawan," Gelrin said in praise. "You acted beyond the call of duty and neutralised a potential threat to the people of Balmorra. You attempted a peaceful resolution. My only concern is how quickly you came to the conclusion of neutralisation, however, it is not such a big problem. We will send word to the Balmorran government immediately that the nest was there, and there could be rogue Colicoids in the surrounding area. Well done padawan."

"Thank you, master," Etheshif said, bowing again in respect.

"So, onto your next task," Gelrin said, smiling a little. "You're staying on Coruscant this time. It's a small profile mission, but something that's causing a slight bit of concern. On the lower levels of the commercial district in the southern quadrant there's been a number of small tremors. It's possible it's just one of the machines being faulty, but it could be an earthquake. The Jedi Council want you to go to the quadrant and take geographical and geothermal readings of the area and report back."

"Is that all, master?" Etheshif asked, a little confused at the simplicity of the task.

"Yes, padawan," Gelrin said sternly. "Not all the missions you'll be assigned will be exciting or complex. The Jedi Order responds to many different types of requests, even small things, in the need of protecting the people, keeping the peace and reassuring our citizens."

"Of course, master," Etheshif said, bowing in apology. "I'm sorry."

"Quite alright, padawan," Gelrin said. "Just be mindful of yourself. A addiction to thrills will only lead to danger and death."

Etheshif bowed again, not wanting to apologise for a second time for the same thing.

"Now, complete this task as quickly as possible, we have a few people awaiting the data and it will allow us to proceed to the next trial," Gelrin said.

"Yes, master," Etheshif said, bowing a final time, before turning and walking out of the room.

Gelrin turned back towards the sunset, closing her eyes in quiet meditation. She was a little troubled by the arrogance displayed in her apprentice. She worried that it could lead to something a lot worse if left unchecked.

At the speeder terminal of the Jedi Temple, Etheshif procured a small black speeder for travelling around Coruscant in. The speeder had no roof, only two seats and was compact. It was, by far, not one of the newer models, but Etheshif liked the look of it anyway, and it was cheap because it was older. He got into the speeder and set off into the planet-wide city of Coruscant.

Travelling through the city, Etheshif flew due south. His rank as a Jedi allowed him freedoms when it came to not travelling in the speeder lanes, allowing him to travel wherever he wanted to go. Etheshif was always amazed at the towering buildings of Coruscant, how they were millennia old yet still standing tall, proud and strong. They were a colossus, a monument of the ages, each building having an extensive history. The lower section of the city also has a rich history. In years gone past, it was the haven of crime and illegality, but, over the past century, that had begun to change. Reform came to the lower levels, the crime rates went down as the city was expanded even more, as more money was spent on the lower levels, making them a habitable place to live. Etheshif knew that it would never be perfect, but, as he sped through the towering buildings, the bright city lights lighting every corner of the growing night sky, he felt safe there.

The journey to the southern quadrant was long, especially in a small speeder, but it give Etheshif time to reflect on his recent missions. He remembered just five years before, when he was given his first task. He had excelled then, better than his new master could've hoped for, and he'd only gotten better with each passing year, each task completed. He smiled to himself as he looked back over his past successes. He knew he was becoming a little arrogant, but he felt he deserved it. There was no task that he felt he couldn't over come.

Coming upon the southern quadrant, and the first location Etheshif was supposed to scan, he parked the speeder and set off on foot. As he walked, he felt a little disdain at being given such a trivial task, he felt as though his talents were better served elsewhere, even if the Jedi were supposed to help with any matter. He pulled the scanner from his pocket as he came upon the co-ordinates for the first location and began scanning. The scanner quickly finished, but Etheshif frowned at the results.

"Warning! Unknown factors shaking under city supports!"

"This is programmed to detect shifts and vibrations coming from the planet, and to measure the vibrations of any machines that could be faulty," Etheshif said out loud, absent mindedly. "That means, there must be something else down there."

Etheshif turned back towards his speeder. A boom rippled through the air. Etheshif watched as a cloud of smoke and fire erupted from his speeder. Pieces of metal were thrown into the air in all directions. A small piece of metal flew directly at Etheshif's head, but he caught it with the force and discarded it to the side. Looking at the black smoke rising from his destroyed speeder, Etheshif was shocked. He didn't know how it had happened, nor why it caught him so off guard. As he looked, scanning the area with his eyes for clues, he heard the sound of rockets in the air above him. He looked up to see a man, wearing a jet pack, lowering himself to the ground. Etheshif pulled out his lightsabre and the blue beam erupted from the hilt.

"Who are you?" Etheshif asked, confused.

"Mandalorian," the jet-pack man said. "I can't let you interfere with our job, Jedi."

"Mandalorian?" Etheshif asked. "No one has heard of the Mandalorians in years. Some even think you died out."

"We will rise again, Jedi, and our numbers will grow strong," the Mandalorian said fiercely. "Now, prepare to die, Jedi."

The Mandalorian stretched his arm forward and two barrels began to fire on Etheshif. Etheshif used his sabre to deflect the shots back, but they were quicker than any blaster he'd seen before. Pushing forward, still deflecting the shots, Etheshif tried to narrow the gap between them. Seeing what the Jedi was up to, the Mandalorian rose up into the air, hovering above ground. Etheshif jumped, trying to reach the man and attack with a direct slice, but as he got close, the Mandalorian manoeuvred out of the way. The Mandalorian laughed, which made Etheshif begin to become agitated. He had never had a fight last this long before, not without the other person being a Jedi. Etheshif span round as the blaster fire began again. He managed to deflect one of the shots straight back, blowing the blaster off of the Mandalorian's arm. Whilst he was recovering, Etheshif jumped at the Mandalorian again, hoping to catch him off guard. He held the sabre high, ready to bring it down on the Mandorian's head and cut him in two. As he reached the arch of his jump, the Mandalorian kicked out, hitting Etheshif square in the chest. He landed hard and rolled across the metal floor. The Mandalorian landed just beside him and kicked Etheshif in the stomach.

"Now, you die, Jedi," the Mandalorian said, snidely.

As he said this, the ground began to shake. Almost as if he was used to the tremors, the Mandalorian shot back up into the air, becoming unaffected by the tremor. Etheshif was still struggling to get up and the tremors were making it more difficult. His lightsabre was rolling around, but he tried to reach out to it. The tremors became worse after a few seconds. Etheshif heard the metal underneath him begin to groan under the strain. The metal he was laid on seemed to be stretching almost, the welded seams coming apart. The Mandalorian took off his helmet. Etheshif looked up and saw the person had long blonde hair, bright blue eyes and soft pale skin. It wasn't a man that had beaten him, it was a woman. Etheshif felt angry at this, even though he had no reason to. His pride had been beaten back by someone he considered to be weaker than him. The anger filled him with strength, and he climbed to his knees.

"Look upon the woman who killed you," the Mandalorian said, snidely.

The metal underneath Etheshif finally gave way. It cracked along the seams and split open. Etheshif was knocked off balance and fell into the gap that was created, his lightsabre soon after. After watching him fall into the darkness below, the Mandalorian put her helmet back on and flew away.


End file.
